This invention relates to a device for securing an indwelling Foley catheter to a limb of a person and more particularly to a device which is particularly useful with postoperative male patients who have had a transurethal resection of the prostate gland or an open prostatectomy where some degree of catheter traction may be desired.
Heretofore in the art to which my invention relates there has been a great need for a better and more practical means for securing Foley catheters left indwelling and for improving patient comfort while at the same time providing catheter stability. A need has also existed for a device which would secure the Foley catheter under traction following prostatic surgery to obtain tamponade and thereby decrease postoperative bleeding. Many male patients who have undergone surgery transurethrally for prostate gland obstruction or who have had an open surgical procedure for the same problem (open prostatectomy) have postoperative bleeding from the surgical site. One method of decreasing this postoperative bleeding is to insert a Foley catheter into the bladder, inflate the catheter balloon and pull the catheter balloon down against the bladder neck, thus tamponading the bleeding which is present. The Foley catheter tubing oftentimes must be placed under traction to obtain and maintain the tamponade effect. Current methods of obtaining this catheter traction include: (1) shaving the thigh and taping the catheter with traction to the leg. This method of obtaining traction is not satisfactory in that, invariably, skin abrasions and blisters result due to the traction and tension exerted against the skin of the leg. (2) Use of conventional leg straps with which I am familiar serve a useful function but none provide proper catheter traction without slipping on the leg or constricting the leg where sufficient tension is exerted to provide adequate traction on the catheter. The flow of urine and irrigating solution through the catheter may also be impaired if too much tension is applied to the catheter to secure it. Conventional leg straps with which I am familiar are disclosed in the following U.S. Pat.: Nos. 3,726,280; 3,765,421; 3,878,849; and 4,096,863.